Hit the road for a "One-Tank Trip" around Southern Ontario.
Adventures worth the drive from the syndicated newspaper/web column by Jim Fox

Welcome

Greetings to the many thousands of readers over the past month from across Canada and the United States, as well as countries including the United Kingdom, Russia, Germany, France, India, Australia, Japan, the Ukraine, Mexico, Romania and the Netherlands.

Total Pageviews

Sunday, February 23, 2014

Shipwrecks, pirates and treasures at the Waterloo Region Museum; rare artifacts from China's Forbidden City at the ROM

One-Tank Trip for
Feb. 22/14

(c) By Jim Fox

Ahoy mateys – be on
the lookout for pirates and treasure recovered from the depths of the oceans.

And, check out some
250 treasures that were part of imperial life from China’s Forbidden City.

They are featured in
two special exhibitions being shown for the first time in Canada at the Waterloo
Region Museum in Kitchener and the Royal Ontario Museum (ROM) in Toronto.

Visitors can learn
about shipwrecks and the recovery of their valuable cargoes at the Waterloo
Region Museum.

Shiver me timbers

“Shipwreck! Pirates
and Treasure” is an exhibit containing hundreds of shipwreck artifacts
collected from beneath the surface of the oceans.

The exhibit, created
by Florida-based Odyssey Marine Exploration, is on daily through April 30
at the Waterloo Region Museum.

It includes an interactive
gallery and activities to “immerse visitors with the lore, legends and facts of
pirates” from the Caribbean, Barbary corsairs from North Africa, privateers and
buccaneers.

Visitors can find
out what it’s like to be a shipwreck explorer, captain of a sinking ship or a
pirate on the run along with hands-on activities such as a robotic arm to pick
up treasure and a hurricane simulator to challenge storms.

Hundreds of
shipwreck artifacts are on display at an exhibition at the Waterloo Region
Museum.

There are some “500
priceless artifacts” recovered from famous shipwrecks including gold and silver
treasures from thousands of leagues under the seas.

Interactive games
and challenges “allow visitors to experience the thrill of shipwreck
exploration while investigating some of the world’s greatest maritime stories,”
said James Jensen, curator of exhibits.

The Royal Ontario
Museum is opening the gates of China’s Forbidden City on March 8.

Called “The Forbidden
City: Inside the Court of China’s Emperors,” it runs until Sept. 1 and launches
the ROM’s year-long centennial celebrations.

A portrait of
Emperor Yongzheng in his study will be shown at the Royal Ontario Museum’s Forbidden
City exhibition. (The Palace Museum photo)

“Canadians will see
250 treasures that were part of imperial life with these incredibly rare
artifacts being seen outside China for first time,” said publicist Marilynne
Friedman.

Many of the objects,
including textiles, calligraphy, paintings and armour, have never before
travelled outside China.

“The ROM’s
exhibition takes visitors on a remarkable journey to the heart of the Forbidden
City – once off limits to all but a privileged few,” said Janet Carding, ROM director
and chief executive officer.

Presented in
collaboration with Beijing’s Palace Museum, the items are complemented by artifacts
from the ROM’s collections that “tell captivating stories and reveal the
fascinating characters” that made the Forbidden City the centre of an immense
empire for more than 500 years.

This imperial throne
set is part of the ROM’s China’s Forbidden City exhibition. (The Palace Museum)

There will be an
extensive rotation of objects half way through the exhibition’s engagement due
to a significant number of light-sensitive textiles and paintings.

In the exhibition’s
“climatic section,” there’s a look inside the emperor’s personal spaces that
were once forbidden to all but the ruler.